The dogs arrived in August, along with 80 others, 13 horses and one donkey, all sick and severely malnourished. Their owner, Nancy Payne, had been charged with animal cruelty.

“The awareness that we had with this case really gave us the confidence that we can handle cases like this in the future,” Hood said. “All in all, it was a wonderful experience getting to help those animals and fine-tune the refuge.”

Payne, who refused to relinquish ownership of the animals until a court hearing in November, is scheduled to appear in court again early next year on the animal cruelty charge.

She also will be in civil court to discuss payment for the refuge’s costs of caring for the horses and donkey. The cost for the dogs’ upkeep, which Hood estimated at $50,000, was pardoned when Payne waived her rights to the animals.

“In her mind, she didn’t believe she was being abusive, but the sheer volume — not to mention their medical state — made this an abuse case,” Walton County Sheriff Mike Adkinson said.

Adkinson said animal abuse cases have been on the upswing in recent years because of the poor economy and his agency’s proactive approach.

He is talking with Walton County commissioners about aligning the Sheriff’s Office and animal control more closely because of the need for the two agencies to work together.

The dogs arrived in August, along with 80 others, 13 horses and one donkey, all sick and severely malnourished. Their owner, Nancy Payne, had been charged with animal cruelty.

“The awareness that we had with this case really gave us the confidence that we can handle cases like this in the future,” Hood said. “All in all, it was a wonderful experience getting to help those animals and fine-tune the refuge.”

Payne, who refused to relinquish ownership of the animals until a court hearing in November, is scheduled to appear in court again early next year on the animal cruelty charge.

She also will be in civil court to discuss payment for the refuge’s costs of caring for the horses and donkey. The cost for the dogs’ upkeep, which Hood estimated at $50,000, was pardoned when Payne waived her rights to the animals.

“In her mind, she didn’t believe she was being abusive, but the sheer volume — not to mention their medical state — made this an abuse case,” Walton County Sheriff Mike Adkinson said.

Adkinson said animal abuse cases have been on the upswing in recent years because of the poor economy and his agency’s proactive approach.

He is talking with Walton County commissioners about aligning the Sheriff’s Office and animal control more closely because of the need for the two agencies to work together.